How Do I Say It?
by Aloysius Vitale
Summary: A collection of drabbles based off 100 prompts of different ways to say "I love you."
1. Pull over - let me drive for awhile

It was late — pretty _damn_ late by the fact the glow of the clock on the dashboard was the only thing illuminating the interior of the truck. It was a twenty hour drive over to the base, but it dragged. It felt more like several days had passed in the course of an afternoon. Why jet was out of the option was of the business of their commanding officer, so they decided it better to just keep to their orders. They mused it was because the trucks needed to get there somehow and they were one of the unlucky fuckers. Of course, Jack and Gabe had agreed it would be quicker to hoof it the whole way there without stopping for the night. They felt stupid making the decision now. Gabe fell asleep against the passenger window hours ago, arms crossed defensively over his chest as he dozed off for a little bit of rest. He'd been up since then with the silence between them comfortable, but… empty.

The radio was playing some late night talk show with some music quietly playing in the background. Nothing he really recognized, but then again — they'd been passing through states for hours. "Welcome back." Gabe snapped out of a daze with Jack's gentle voice through the silence bringing him back to the land of the living. The noise he gave was something between a grunt and a scoff while he rubbed at his eyes. "How far we got?" Gabe stared ahead at the road at the endless expanse of highway before them.

He could see the gears turning in the blond's head, looking down at the odometer then brushing it off with a shrug. "An hour or two." Jack gestured with one hand on the wheel before the other folded back over it. _Bullshit_. Gabe could see the words on the bright green signs as they passed with the headlights shining off of them. "Or twelve." He corrected, stretching his legs out with his arms up over his head. His fingers grazed over the roof, leaning back with a yawn. "How long was I out?" He murmured, rubbing his neck from the way he'd wound up falling asleep. He could see the way a smile curled onto Jack's lips, "An hour or two." His tone was largely more sarcastic now. He looked tired — anyone would be tired after driving for this long.

The silence set in again. The both of them absently listened to the radio as another song came on. It was nothing Gabe was a fan of, but it was keeping Jack awake at least. There were only a few other cars on the road the way it was. There wasn't much there to keep him up and alert. After a moment, he felt sort of guilty for falling asleep. His thoughts turned over in his head and he sighed, knowing that the silence was his fault. Things had been weird between the two of them for weeks now. It wasn't from one specific event, but a compound of everything that had been compounding over months and months in the Soldier Enhancement Program. The closest of friends were growing more and more distant from each other and everyone else. He felt like shit over it, but the words to mend a situation like this weren't easy to come by. So, he thought of the least he could do.

"Pull over. Let me drive for awhile."


	2. It reminded me of you

Gabriel wasn't one for keepsakes. He'd long ago lost all the things he once held close to him. He had things he'd recovered from back home that he kept safe far away from anywhere he could lose them, but it wasn't often that he accumulated more. Since he'd returned, he kept to himself and the two people in his life who seemed to be the focus of his world — Jack more so, but details were details. His thumb rolled over the weakly stringed bracelet in his hand. Alternating skull beads were threaded with a piece of elastic. A child's bracelet colored dulled over time from exposure, whether that be weather or wear.

She came up to him so casually following the mission. No one got severely hurt and everyone seemed to be in good spirits. He was watching the boisterous round of slaps on the back and smiles on familiar faces, but hadn't expected Lena's gentle smile in his view. He never quite expected her to smile around him much. He'd taken a step back, face puzzled behind his mask as he was holstering his shotguns. It wasn't the typical smile she wore — the big grin, ear-to-ear with a bounce in her step. It seemed more meaningful. No teeth were bared and her cheeks burned from the exercise.

She was hiding something. Her hands folded behind her back like a child hiding a present from their parent. He didn't want to ask what it was, but he was sure he was going to find out anyway. "Found this out there." She revealed her secret when her hands uncrossed from behind her and brought the small piece of jewelry into view. The skulls were made of some sort of hardened clay or glass, but it didn't look cheap. It was something that its owner once loved by the looks of it.

Now, waiting to leave to return home, Gabriel sat on the outside of their rendezvous point while everyone chatted inside. His claws grazed over the outline of the one skull — a black one with faded eye sockets. It was chipped at the top, a flaw in its design that he couldn't tell was purposeful or not. Each one had its defect. Some were nearly completely worn and others were chipped as if hanging on their last leg. Despite that, it was still pretty in its own right. It was something special to its previous owner and now… it felt special to him.

His thoughts clung to the words that left Lena's mouth as she pushed it into his gauntlet out on the field before bouncing off to reunite with Jack after he'd taken the charge on the last mission. "It reminded me of you." They were spoke so quickly, but there was a certain amount of kindness about them. A genuineness and concern that was absent in their relationship at most points. They repeated over and over again as the smallest of smiles curled on his lips, slipping the bracelet past his claws to wear it underneath his sleeve. It would remind him of her too.


	3. It's my treat

Gabriel was relentless. He took hold of Jack's hands and tugged — trying to pull him out of the bed though it wasn't enough to move the ball of muscle curled up in the blankets with his legs wrapped around the bedpost. "You've been laying there all day. C'mon!" Gabriel grunted though the same noise was given to him in response. They'd only gotten back from a _long_ conference about three days ago, but he wasn't about to let him clam up and spend the day by himself in this dark room again. He'd drag the extrovert out of him if it was his dying breath. Well, more like he wanted to spend a day with his boyfriend without the need for suits and proper manners.

Was he ticklish? He couldn't remember. The moment he left go of Jack's hands, they went back to pulling the pillow over his head and burrowing into a curled little ball under his blankets. What an ass. Gabriel sighed in exasperation, kneeling on the bed and prodding at where he could guess the other's side was beneath the duvet and mess of sheets. The sudden flail and noise gave him a good indication of a resounding _yes_ to his previous question. The puss on his face lightened up and he crawled a little closer, prodding and poking at Jack's sides and tickling him without a care as he felt feet kicking at him following by a bubble of laughter. " _Gabe_ _ **!**_ " Music to his ears.

Gabriel didn't stop, one arm scooping Jack up around his waist and pulling him onto his lap while he was flailing around as his other hand continued to tickle at his sides. Jack yanked the sheet that was covering his face off, bright red cheeks growing as he panted for breath when Gabriel finally stopped. He was met with the condescending smirk on the other's face as he held him laying in his lap. "Hey beautiful." Gabriel leaned over closer, feeling the hot breath and even hotter glare on him. Two hands slapped onto his cheeks, pulling them apart with a pinch to make his grin painful.

"— _ey,_ that _hurts_ you know!" Gabriel whined, releasing Jack's waist and rubbing at his cheeks. Jack sprawled out over his lap with his tummy showing as he stretched his arms up over his head. He froze as he felt his personal space heater rub his hands all over the bare skin. A sudden shiver went up his spine and Gabriel couldn't look more amused. Jack smacked his cheek, "Stop it, I'm mad at you."

Gabriel took his chance, grabbing the hand and kissing his knuckles. "Fine, be as mad as you want to be at me, but do it out of bed. I'm starting to get stir crazy." He murmured, flopping over on the bed and pulling Jack up on his chest. "Let's go get a pizza or something — it's my treat."


	4. Come here - let me fix it

It was late. The night was young, but it was far past curfew. Jack stared up at the ceiling, arms tucked behind his head as he watched the light overhead absently, consumed in his thoughts. His roommate had yet to come home. He had other things on his mind right now. They'd been in this program for months now. There were so many things — responsibilities — they had to come to terms with. The expectations placed on their heads were only expanding… exponentially. Some of the folks felt it starting to get to them. Everyone could feel it. They were evolving into something bigger than themselves. That sort of things started to eat away at people.

Yet, he wasn't expecting his roommate to stumble in with tears in his eyes and looking like he'd walked through hell itself. His uniform was ruined and from what he could see, he had a pretty nice shiner. "Reyes?" He shifted, propping himself up as his roommate flinched. "A–ah– shit, Morrison, did I— did I wake you up—" Gabriel stumbled over his words, groping for the lightswitch and turning it off. He turned and grabbed the door, going to leave before the sound of bare feet hitting the ground was followed by a hand on his shoulder. "Light was on when you came in." Jack flicked the lights back on, pulling Gabriel back in and pushing the door shut in one quick movement before anyone could hear the commotion from the hallway.

Streaming apologies and halfhearted swears, Gabriel looked small the way he hunched over clutching something in his hands. "What _happened_ to you?" Jack held onto his shoulder, steadying him as he wavered and shook from the sobs. It wasn't like they were anywhere in the eyes of the public. Did he get _jumped_? He'd seen Gabriel in hand-to-hand training. Hell, he'd **FACED** him in hand-to-hand training. It was hard enough to nail him down, let alone get a shot at his face. "Stay here." He guided Gabriel away from the door and left him go near his bed, backing away with raised hands before bolting from their room and down the hallways.

Gabriel's voice was stuck in his throat with the knot that made it hard to swallow. "Jack—" He struggled with the name, not wanting to put him through any sort of trouble. God, he didn't want any of this. He'd felt everything weighing down on him and this had been the tipping point. He was sent over the edge. He was ready for their higher ups to come with a gun and moment now, put him down like a fucking dog. It wasn't like they could just release people from SEP. They knew too much and they'd been through too much to let them go around being normal people again. Everyone had to have known by now — well, at least those that needed to know everything.

Jack came back toting the first aid kit from the commons. Gabriel didn't even want to ask how he'd gotten past any sort of night guards. He was sure that Jack could already see the questions on his face, murmuring a quick "don't ask" as he lifted it up onto the bed and opened it up. "You don't need to do this, Morrison. I'll just— go wake up the—" He silenced at the look he was given. "No, we're not waking anyone. Give me your hands." They'd already been put through enough first aid training to manage and he had enough here to take care of a black eye and a few cuts.

Gabriel didn't comply. He still clutched his hands close to his chest. He shook his head, childish and weak. Jack's lips pursed, slipping a little close and laying a hand on his shoulder. "C'mon. I'm not going to hurt you. I need you to work with me here. What do you have?" His voice wasn't horribly pushy, but it wasn't babying him. What Gabriel didn't see was how much this side of him was beginning to worry his poor roommate. He stayed silent for another moment before uncurling his fingers that had a death grip around the two chains that hung down as soon as he left go.

Jack looked, seeing what looked like a dog tag hanging down along with a set of rosary beads. He scooped both up onto his hand, confused at first. He already saw Gabriel's tags hanging around his neck. "What are these—" He paused, tilting his head and reading the name and vaguely recognizing the style. _Emilio Reyes_. Of course the last name was familiar, but he looked confused. The lights clicked on a second later and his heart sank when he saw the rosary along with it. Gabriel was far from a religious man, but he had noted long ago that his mother was much more pious from the way Gabriel talked about her.

Gabriel didn't want to leave go of either, but he slowly released both things when Jack had a good hold on them. Both chains were broken — snapped from force. The black beads on the rosary were partially missing and the dog tag was scuffed and worn. It was a split second before Gabriel felt himself being hugged and pulled in close. He could barely process his own thoughts, let alone what was happening. He latched back onto the blonde, sobbing against his shoulder. "— _I never got to say goodbye_." His voice was broken and cracking, distant from the man Jack had come to know since basic training.

Piece by piece, Jack got the jumbled mess that was Gabriel's day out of him. He'd gotten an important package from home — the beads and tag from his mother. His father had died. It wasn't ten minutes that he was crying over the letter that two of their fellow soldiers thought they could approach him though perhaps their method wasn't quite welcomed. Gabriel's temper could never be quenched and he got into a fight over it. One black eye later, this is where he'd wound up. Jack held onto him, fingers in the curls already starting to grow at the back of his head since their last haircuts. His heart was heavy with few words to even say. He looked at the chains he was still hanging on to, feeling Gabriel release him and pull back. Gabriel hugged around himself, looking at Jack as he handed the chains back to him. He sucked in a breath, folding his hands around them and bringing them up to his lips.

Jack's bittersweet little smile made his heart jump, but it plummeted in his chest again. "I'm sorry." Gabriel murmured, head aching from all the crying and feeling tears threatening to come back again. "You don't have to be sorry." Jack moved around the other side of the bed to his own desk, digging in the drawers. He'd fix up the cuts later, but there was something a little bit more important to his roommate right now. "Come here. Let me fix them."


End file.
